Holidays & Entertaining 3 DIY Gold-Leaf Holiday Decorations With a roll of Kraft paper (and a lesson in DIY gold-leaf), you can make rustic-meets-glam holiday decorations. By Midwest Living editors Midwest Living editors Midwest Living's experienced editors create best-in-class travel, lifestyle, food, home and garden content you won't find anywhere else. We're loudly, proudly Midwestern, and we're passionate about helping our audience explore and create through award-winning storytelling. Midwest Living's Editorial Guidelines Updated on November 7, 2022 Gold-leaf holiday decor. Photo: David Land Craft shiny, sophisticated paper tassels, paper flowers and holly ornaments to decorate your home for the holidays. Each starts with a roll of Kraft paper and DIY gold-leafing. PHOTO: David Land PHOTO: David Land DIY Gold-Leafed Paper What You'll Need: * Roll of Kraft paper * Crafts glue * Two foam brushes * Gold leaf sheets How-to Unroll a section of Kraft paper on a flat surface. Brush on random, imperfect swaths of crafts glue with foam brush. Do not coat entire surface with glue. Allow glue to set until tacky, then apply gold leaf sheets by gently rubbing in place with your finger. Remove gold leaf from unglued areas by gently dusting with dry foam brush. Your goal is to partially gild the paper, not cover it entirely. Beautiful Christmas Crafts Kraft paper tassel. David Land Gift Wrap Wrap gifts in paper you decorate with metallic paint pens or gold leaf. Handmade paper tassels add a playful touch to a traditional gift box. What You'll Need * Straightedge * Utility knife * Kraft paper, plain and gold-leafed * Glue stick * Ribbon Gift wrap tassels. David Land How-to Cut ½-inch-wide strips of plain Kraft paper into twelve 10-inch lengths. Lay strips in a starburst pattern, gluing each strip to the one on top of it. Let dry. Loosely bend bundle of strips in half to form a tassel. Glue a strip of gold-leafed Kraft paper around bundle 1 inch from top. For hanger, slip ribbon through the opening below where the strips are folded over. Easy Christmas Gift Wrap Ideas David Land Paper Flowers Attach paper flowers to gold-painted branches with glue dots, or use them to decorate a fresh wreath like the one in our top photo. What You'll Need * Flower templates (download templates here) * Scissors * Gold-leafed Kraft paper * Gold beads * Hot-glue gun David Land How-to Use template to cut flower shapes from Kraft paper. Fold each in half along dotted lines as shown on template. Unfold and fold in half along other axis; unfold. Glue a bead in center. Attach paper flowers to branches with glue dots. David Land Holly Ornaments What You'll Need * Holly leaf template (download free template here) * Scissors * Gold-leafed Kraft paper * Bone folder * Glue stick * Ribbon * Gold beads David Land How-to Use template to cut eight holly leaves from Kraft paper and fold each in half lengthwise with bone folder. Glue one side of a folded leaf to one side of another. Repeat, stopping short of gluing first and last leaves together. Sandwich a loop of ribbon inside leaves and leave a 1-inch tail; glue first and last leaves. Tie a bead to each end of ribbon. Homemade Christmas Ornaments Add Personality to Your Tree Was this page helpful? Thanks for your feedback! Tell us why! Other Submit